Brendan Gleeson paves road to 'Calvary' with soul, wit

Calvary offers a fascinating look at contemporary attitudes toward the priesthood and Catholicism, as well as an impeccable lead performance by Brendan Gleeson and darkly sharp wit.

Gleeson is a masterful actor whose indelible roles include key parts in The Guard and In Bruges. His portrait of Father James, an Irishman who found his vocation late in life, is brilliant in its blend of compassion, weariness, humility and faith.

Set in the starkly picturesque fishing village of Easkey in County Sligo, Ireland, this comic drama (***½ out of four; rated R; opens Friday in select cities) is worth seeing if only for Gleeson's soulful portrayal.

Calvary is also profoundly compelling for the light it shines on how public attitudes have changed toward the clergy in the wake of the abusive-priests scandal.

A multilayered and compelling film, Calvary explores forgiveness, revenge, faith and the loss of belief. But it trips up slightly with its broad characterizations. A couple of supporting characters come off as caricatures, and one of them, a male prostitute, seems to have wandered in from another movie.

But the point is clear: Father James' parishioners are flawed and wounded. He is admirably non-judgmental and intuitively understands he must absorb local Catholics' collective anger and sense of betrayal.

Writer-director John Michael McDonagh also directed 2011's The Guard, a raucous action comedy. He and Gleeson are a masterful team of filmmaker and muse. McDonagh also is the brother of playwright/filmmaker Martin McDonagh, whose films include In Bruges. And on the subject of family ties, Gleeson's son Domhnall plays an immature, conflicted priest in this film.

Calvary opens with Father James hearing confession. A male voice on the other side of the screen vividly describes how he plans to kill the priest.

The penitent man seeks retribution for the sexual abuse he endured for five years, starting as a 7-year-old, at the hands of a now-dead parish priest. He tells Father James he will exact his revenge in a week — and for added symbolism, on a Sunday.

"No point in killing a bad priest," says the anguished man. "I'm going to kill you because you're innocent."

Audiences don't learn until the end the identity of this would-be killer.

Consequently, Calvary is simultaneously a mystery, a portrait of a complex spiritual man and a commentary on evolving attitudes toward clergymen. It works on all those levels, but as a sketch of small-town life it's a bit less effective.

A subplot involving Father James and his troubled adult daughter Fiona (Kelly Reilly) is moving in its emotional complexity. Father James is not only a spiritual father, he's also a biological parent who must grapple with the challenges presented by that unusual dual role. The flame-haired Fiona has not fully recovered from her mother's death and her father subsequently entering the priesthood.

The priest's daily interactions with residents include enduring taunts from an obnoxious millionaire (Dylan Moran) and setting straight the local butcher (Chris O'Dowd) for beating his unfaithful wife (Orla O'Rourke), who is carrying on an affair with a mechanic from the Ivory Coast (Isaach De Bankolé). Father James also makes regular visits to a reclusive American author (M. Emmet Walsh). Ultimately, he turns to a bishop (David McSavage) to discuss the death threat. No useful counsel emerges. He's on his own.

The climactic face-off, with its revelations of detachment and indifference, will leave viewers shaken.

A deeply ethical clergyman is vilified for the evil done by his brethren, and audiences are left to ponder and sort out the mess.